Continuing demand for smaller and lighter electronics has created a need for advanced materials and designs. This is because current trends in electronic markets, such as the growing demand for wireless communications and portable computing, are placing an increasing emphasis on smaller/lighter device features and faster operating speeds. To ensure reliable operation of an electronic circuit, proper electrical isolation between adjacent conductors must be achieved. Proper electrical isolation mitigates high voltage arcing and leakage currents, which can be exacerbated at high frequencies. As device density on chips increases, the difficulty in achieving proper electrical isolation also increases.
As the wafer size increases and/or as transistor device size decreases, concerns over the interlayer dielectric material become more important. Current interlayer dielectric materials, such as inorganic oxides and nitrides, have beneficial aspects as well as deficiencies. It is more important to account for certain physical properties, such as unwanted diffusion, crosstalk, adequate insulation (both electrical and temperature), coefficients of thermal expansion, short channel effects, leakage, critical dimension control, drain induced barrier lowering, and the like, when making circuit designs.
Thus, there is a need in the art for materials that provide better insulation, and methods and systems for integrating those materials into the fabrication processes of semiconducting devices.